


Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

by supercalvin



Series: 13 Nights of Halloween [12]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Fluff, Halloween, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-30
Updated: 2014-10-30
Packaged: 2018-02-23 06:37:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2537912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/supercalvin/pseuds/supercalvin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur goes to Gaius Cafe before work and sees a fit runner who stops by every morning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

**Author's Note:**

> Fluff, fluff, fluff!
> 
> All the Halloween Fluff I could cram into one fic.

Every morning before work Arthur has a coffee at Gaius’ Café. It was worth the extra effort to get up in the morning just so he could enjoy his coffee and check out the news and daily occurrences before going into work. The routine helped him wake up and get ready for the day.

Then there was always that runner who came in every morning too. He didn’t help Arthur wake up, but he always smiled at Arthur, as if they were casual acquaintances instead of strangers. Arthur heard Gaius call the runner ‘Merlin’ once. He purchased water and a cup of fruit, sometimes indulging in a fancy sugary drink.

Arthur knew nothing about him, but maybe that would change.

  

It was two in the afternoon and Arthur felt exhausted. It was one of _those_ days. The days where it felt like you’d been at work for hours and it was only nine o’clock. He decided to stop by Gaius’ Café and grab a coffee to pick himself up for the rest of the day.

When he arrived, Merlin was behind the counter. Arthur must have made a noise of surprise because the man startled and looked up.

“Hey!” said Merlin, “Blond Business Bloke from the mornings”

“What?” Arthur laughed despite himself. If he hadn’t had known Merlin’s name he wondered what he would have called him. Maybe ‘the Fit Runner from Gaius’ Café.’

“Sorry.” Merlin blushed, his cheeks lighting up differently than they did with the morning air or the heat of a run. “You only come in the mornings.”

“Should I come back tomorrow morning then?” Arthur asked, pointing his thumb toward the door.

“No, I suppose now will have to do.” Merlin made a fake put-upon sigh and asked, “What can I get for you?”

“Is there anything with enough sugar to get me through the rest of the day?”

“Bad day?” Merlin asked.

“Just slow.” Arthur shrugged.

“Pumpkin spice is always nice.” Merlin hummed at his own rhyme and Arthur thought it might have been too cute for his heart to handle.

“One autumn flavored drink it is then.” Arthur paid for it and Merlin went to work to make it.

“Where do you work that’s so slow then?” Merlin asked conversationally.

“Pendragon Research Institute.”

Merlin stopped for a moment and looked at Arthur for a moment. “Wait a second…” he narrowed his eyes. “Oh my god. You’re Arthur Pendragon, aren’t you?”

No one recognized Arthur. Hell, it was lucky when an employee knew what their boss looked like. “How do you know me?”

“I’m studying medicine.” Merlin explained. “Your research is everywhere. Well, not _your_ research, but you know what I mean.”

“Are you a student?”

“Medicinal Magic. Pendragon has some of the best research in my field. Well I guess that’s you actually. It’s my last year and then I will have my degree. I just work at Gaius’ to help him out.”

Merlin handed Arthur his fancy drink.

“See you around?” Arthur asked.

“Definitely.”

  

The cold weather set in and yet Merlin kept running with barely anything on. So Arthur did the sensible thing to do and bought him a knit cap.

Arthur was heading out the door when Merlin came in.

“Morning.” Merlin said with a smile, his cheeks flushed with the run.

“Good morning.” Arthur donned his coat and pulled out the blue knit cap from his pocket. “You’ll catch your death.” He put it in Merlin’s hands before he had time to protest. Arthur watched as Merlin’s eyes went from confused to elated in less than two seconds. Arthur smiled, ducking his head and making his way out the door before he could blush.

  

After Merlin had grabbed his water he came over to Arthur’s table and set down a pastry. “Gaius only makes these during autumn. You should get them while they last.”

Arthur gapped at the little red and orange pastry and had enough time to see Merlin’s smug smile before he left the café.  He was wearing Arthur’s knit cap.

  

Arthur thought this might have gotten out of hand because only he would make courting someone a competition. To be fair, if Merlin enjoyed the banter, teasing, and the need to outdo each other in the form of gifts, then he was perfect for Arthur.

Somehow, in less than a week and a half, they had gone from strangers, to acquaintances, to friends. Thanks to Arthur, Merlin now had a blue knit cap, grey fingerless gloves, and a red scarf that fit well around his neck when running. Thanks to Merlin, Arthur was now addicted to pumpkin spice lattes, had a pair of socks with ghosts on them (because he needed fun in his life according to Merlin), and knew way too much about terrible horror movies due Merlin’s rambling.

It wasn’t a surprise when they went out for dinner and went back to Merlin’s place where they watched a bad horror film and drank warm apple cider. It also wasn’t a surprise when Arthur kissed him stupid, the taste of spices on their lips.

  

“I can’t believe you won a stuffed dragon for me.” Merlin said as he rearranged the huge white plush toy in his arms. He was also blushing and Arthur thought that was quite an accomplishment.

“You’re the one who suggested going to a carnival for our date. Now it’s only right I fulfill all the date conventions.”

“Then you can hold Aithusa.” Merlin said, pushing the fluffy dragon into Arthur’s arms.

Arthur was silent for a moment, the plush toy in his arms. “You named it already.”

Merlin, instead of being embarrassed as he should have been, smiled and said, “of course I’ve named it. You won me a prize and it’s only fair that I name it.”

There was a huge stuffed dragon between them, but Arthur pulled Merlin as close as he could and kissed him.

“Come on,” Merlin said against Arthur’s lips. “Let’s go in the haunted house so you can protect me from evil.”

Unfortunately, Arthur ended up being the one who screamed at everything that moved in the haunted house. Merlin was laughing at him until something came up behind him and screamed in his ear. He screamed and tackled Arthur into a hug, as if that would protect him from the man dressed up as a monster. They were both pathetic to say the least. Some of it was on purpose, of course, because now they were pressed close together, hands intertwined tightly.

“We would be dead in a horror movie.” Arthur lamented.

“Nah, I would save us.” Merlin said, even as he jumped when a doll lounged at them.

Arthur snorted. “I think I would be the one doing all the work.”

“Really? You got scared by the little girl.” Merlin raised a brow as they walking into the next room of the haunted house.

“Children monsters are terrifying.”

Merlin had to agree with him.

Both of them were too focused on each other to notice the masked man holding a chainsaw, so when the chainsaw revved they screamed louder than any time before. Arthur grabbed Merlin by the waist and Merlin flung out his hand, his eyes glowing gold. AS the man walked, he hit an invisible shield and couldn’t move forward.

“ _Shit_ ,” Merlin hissed and dropped the shield. “Sorry. Instincts and all that.” The masked man shook himself off and slipped back into the darkened corner from where he had emerged. Arthur’s arms were still around Merlin and when he turned they were much closer together. Apparently Merlin’s instincts desperately told him to protect himself and Arthur, but considering Arthur’s instincts were to grab Merlin and make sure he was safe, they weren’t too different.

“My hero.” Arthur whispered and kissed him.

  

“Ready?”

“You’re going down, Emrys.”

“Watch it Pendragon, I’m a master.”

“Sure. Make sure to use the pointy end of the knife.”

“Har-har. Eat my pumpkin’s dust, _pumpkinhead_.”

 “On the count of three?”

“One, two…three!”

Their pumpkin craving competition ended with two equally stupid jack-o-lanterns. Arthur’s craving was a dragon that was fat and its tail crooked. Merlin said it looked like the kind of dragon who would make you soup when you were sick and tell you bedtime stories.

“Are you calling my dragon a grandma?” Arthur asked.

Merlin tapped his chin for a second in mock-contemplation. “Yes.” he said.

Merlin didn’t have much of a leg to stand on though because his pumpkin had the pi symbol carving into it.

“You’re such a nerd.” Arthur said with a snort.

“Yeah whatever.” Merlin stuck out his tongue, “Mine’s clever and your pumpkin is a sweet grandma dragon.”

“Hey!” Arthur tackled Merlin and it ended in stupid giggles (and kisses).

  

“How is studying going?” Arthur asked as Merlin read with his nose only an inch from the page. He also had his reading glasses on and Arthur tried not to think about how cute it made him look.

“Bleh.” Merlin replied.

“Come on.” Arthur pulled Merlin out of the chair and pulled him to the kitchen. “Let’s make those caramel apples you wanted.”

They ended up getting more caramel on their fingers than on the apples, but that was perfectly fine by Arthur (as long as they didn’t burn themselves) because Merlin just ended up licking and sucking the sugar off his own fingers. It was driving Arthur mad.

As soon as the last apple was set down and they cleaned up, Arthur grabbed Merlin by the waist and kissed him, trying to taste the tartness of the apple slices and the sweetness of the caramel he had eaten.

“I am really starting to really love this time of year.” Merlin whispered. Arthur had to agree with him.

  

“You _cannot_.” Arthur countered.

“I _can_ to!” Merlin protested.

“You’ve got to be joking!”

Merlin laughed and pushed Arthur playfully. “Some sorcerers can turn into animals. It’s not that strange.”

“Can I see?” Arthur asked.

Merlin nodded and with a cast of a spell, his eyes glowed gold. Suddenly Merlin wasn’t anything but a pile of clothes. A form moved around and shimmied out of the shirt until Merlin, now a sleek black cat with gold eyes, appeared.

“What is even the point of that?” Arthur asked. His question was soon answered as Merlin darted out of the room with feline speed and then pounced onto the top of the book case.

“Point taken.” Arthur said with his hands raised. “You do know that you’re the stereotypical witch who turns into a black cat,  right?”

Merlin meowed and since Arthur didn’t speak cat, he didn’t know what he said.

“Are you going to come down now?”

Merlin meowed again.

“ _Merlin_.” Arthur sighed. “Are you stuck on the top of the bookcase?”

Merlin meowed.

Arthur pulled up a chair and picked up Merlin from the top of the case. “You know, you got yourself up here.” Merlin only meowed at him. Arthur cradled Merlin in his arms as he stepped down to the ground. “This is definitely the strangest thing I’ve ever done with a boyfriend.”

As soon as Arthur was firmly on the ground, Merlin suddenly changed back, very human, very naked, and _very heavy_. Arthur stumbled and Merlin fell on top of him with a loud thud and an odd meowing noise.

“ _Merlin_!” Arthur shouted. He glared at Merlin for a moment, aware that he had just landed painfully on his ass with all of Merlin’s weight on his torso.

“Boyfriend?” Merlin’s hopeful smile was so ridiculously innocent that Arthur couldn’t scold him for falling on top of Arthur. Besides, now Merlin was naked in Arthur’s lap and that was hardly a bad thing.

  

It was freezing and pouring down rain but Arthur had to go to the café. He told himself that he needed to do his normal routine in order to properly function, but he knew his real reason. He had never missed a weekday to see Merlin in the morning. Deep down he knew that he could just call Merlin if he wanted to see him, but that wasn’t the same.

When he arrived the chill had seeped through his coat, his hair drenched and in no way suitable for work.  As soon as he stepped in the door, he soaked the doormat. Merlin was already there, wearing his knit cap and a coat which meant he hadn’t been running in the awful weather.

“ _Arthur_ ” Merlin tutted as he felt the rain-drenched coat. He cast a spell and his eyes glowed gold for a moment and Arthur felt his coat warm up, steam rising from his form. Merlin’s warm hands touched Arthur’s icy cheeks which were probably bright red from the cold.

He shivered unexpectedly. “Thanks.” He loved it when Merlin did simple magic. He always talked about the amazing magic used in medicine but seeing him grab a book from across the room or wash the plates with magic always left Arthur feeling warm and content. The way he felt was too domestic too fast, but he didn’t mind because Merlin was looking at him the same way.

“You’ll catch your death.” Merlin pecked a kiss on his lips and Arthur couldn’t help but pull Merlin into a deep kiss in the middle of the Café.

**Author's Note:**

> One more day!!!


End file.
